


Yume to Jitsuzai

by Akaicchi



Category: Persona 4
Genre: Bad Ending, Creepy, Dark, M/M, One-Sided Ted liking Ryou, Other, POV First Person, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-29
Updated: 2018-11-24
Packaged: 2019-08-09 16:19:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 4,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16453241
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akaicchi/pseuds/Akaicchi
Summary: Teddie worries about Dojima having nightmares and wants to help, putting his ability to see into dreams to use. Seems like a good way to find out what's bothering him so much!! Nothing will go wrong, its not like there are ever forces at work using the rest of us as pawns...All written. Been ill again so it’s taking time to post.HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Yume to Jitsuzai means "Dream and Reality" in Japanese. There's a pun in there, but you may not get it till the end...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO! The spacing seems to be off when I transition from regular to italicized text. I copied and pasted it all from a Word doc and it's all god there. If you notice anything I missed, please do let me know!
> 
> I hope you enjoy this year's creepy fic!! ^^

Prologue  
(Teddie)

 _Summer’s the best!_ Today we all had a cookout at the Dojimas’, and now that it’s dark we’re getting ready to go set off fireworks in the park. Yuu picks up anything leftover in the yard while Kanji prods us all to walk around the house without going back in. He says Dojima fell asleep, so we shouldn’t bother him.

“Nnn, I need to use the bathroom!” I tell Yuu.

He glances down at me, nodding. “Come with me then,” he replies. “I need to wash these dishes.” I nod and follow my friend inside the house, shutting the sliding glass door quietly behind me.

Dojima is sleeping sitting up on the couch, eyes pinched shut in a way that doesn’t look very peaceful. I don’t think Yuu notices. He heads right for the sink barely looking at his uncle. I shuffle closer, my bare feet making a _shushi_ ng sound on the tatami.

The man’s arms are folded across his chest and he should look like his defensive self, but instead I get the feeling he’s trying to hug himself. I see Dojima shiver, and realize I should grab the blanket from shelf behind the couch. I’ve got it tucked around him as best I can, when I hear Yuu.

“He’s okay,” he tells me. “It’s been few years, but I think he still gets nightmares.”

 _Still?_ I turn to face my friend, and he gives me a gentle smile. “That’s so sad…”

“Mm,” Yuu nods. “Do you want me to wait for you?”

I shake my head quickly. “Nope! I can find the way,” I assure him. “You’ll bearly notice I’m late!” I grin at my joke to show him it’s really okay. Yuu laughs softly and heads for the door, and I head for the toilet.

When I’m done, the atmosphere in the living room has changed. Dojima looks more tortured than before. One of his hands is gripping the arm of the couch and the blanket is on the floor. He’s making whimpery noises I don’t like—They sound like muffled screams.

I’ve only learned recently that I can see someone’s dreams, if I try. It’s difficult and I don’t know if it’s bad for them, and it does feel like I’m spying. _But I wanna help if I can._

I bite my lip and chew.  _Maybe I could help if I knew what was wrong. He never tells anyone what he’s thinking…_

I really like Dojima. The more time I spend with him, the more I realize that he’s really nice. _People don’t always notice because he’s kind and caring in a way that’s hard to see. That’s the way he likes it: he doesn’t do nice things that are showy because he doesn’t do it to seem like a nice person, but so people quietly know he cares about them._

I’m sitting down next to him before I consciously decide to do just that. People seem to sad when they’re having bad dreams. You’d think they’d look scared, but it sounds more like their hearts are crying—Maybe they’re trying to scream, but it always comes out as muffled mewls.

I reach out my hand to Dojima’s arm. When we’re almost touching, I can hear static. My head snaps towards the television, knowing that it’ll show what he sees.

Except it doesn’t. All I can see is static. It doesn’t clear, even when I’m tightly gripping his arm. _Usually when I touch someone like Yosuke or Kanji, I can see what they see super clear, like I’m the TV’s antenna._

 _I don’t like this._ I bite my lip, worrying _why_ nothing is coming through.

I let go, then try gripping his arm higher and higher. The picture changes, but never gets good enough for me to tell what’s going on.

I don’t know if I do something right, or if I just get lucky, or what—But something happens to. The fuzziness sharpens and I can feel myself rising up, up, up—!

Glancing back down, I can see that the TV shows Dojima, pressing against the screen. And he’s  _terrified._


	2. Chapter One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a normal day at the Inaba PD. A normal day... When, exactly?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *mumbles in embarrassment* I did say not to expect much, if you follow my Twitter... Short chapter. But, fear not, another will be out tomorrow!
> 
> Thank you for reading, and please give me some impressions, if you have the time!! :D It's always appreciated!

Chapter One  
(Ryou)

The last thing I remember is...

_I don’t know. What happened?_

I’m asleep on a nest of papers left scattered across my desktop. I sit up and look around. It’s dark: only Tohru’s desk light is lit and I can hear the patter of rain on the window behind me.

_Did I fall asleep at work again?_

I feel so guilty when this happens. I should be at home, with Nanako and Yuu, not passed out here when they’re counting on me to be there for dinner for once. I stretch and groan, hearing some pops that must be my neck from that awful position.

 _Goddammit Tohru! Did he leave me here and go home?_ I grunt, pinching the bridge of my nose as I try to recall the earlier parts of my day.

_I remember..._

Wracking my brain doesn’t do me much good, unfortunately. The days melt into one another and I can’t seem to recall much. But I can see that I’m in my office, so I must have been working.

Or at least it _looks_ like my office. _Something doesn’t feel right. Call it a ‘gut instinct’, ‘detective’s intuition’, or whatever else you want, but something is definitely off._

My old chair rattles as I shove away from my desk to stand. “Hoo boy,” I breathe out. I lean over our shoved-together desks and see his umbrella left messily on the floor, half-open and still dripping. I roll my eyes at the carelessness, stepping around the shared workspace to clip it shut for him. “Guess I’ll find that moron; he’s still here. Give him a talking-to for not waking me.”

I smile while I fix the umbrella, but the action feels strained under the heavy atmosphere in this room. No reason to stay here, I walk uneasily towards the door.


	3. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Teddie wakes up inside of Dojima's dream. There's a voice that keeps pestering him, trying to literally get into his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I can decide on version of the Epilogue I want, I'll double-post today. I've written two drafts and can't decide which is better AHHH!!

Chapter Two  
(Teddie)

_Something’s wrong!! Very wrong—_

That’s the last thing I’m able to think before I’m sucked from my body and away into the other world. I haven’t been there in so long, and it feels so different that—

That it takes me a long time to figure out that this _isn’t_ actually the TV World. It’s somewhere else. And that makes my stomach jump down to my feet.

_Sooo where am I?_

I turn in a circle, trying to take this place in.

Around me it’s darker than nighttime. So dark that I can’t see anything. _I could be anywhere._ I walk with my arms out, feeling for a wall. My nose isn’t working right either, the weirdness is too thick that I can’t cut through it with my sharpest sense.

It’s only a few steps before I reach a wall. Following aong it, I think things are going to get better until I start to feel myself being pushed around—Not by human hands, but by something in my mind.

_T-that’s new!!_

_‘Get lost, brat!’_ a voice says, trying to shove me out of the driver’s seat. I sumble, and lose my footing. I’m able to catch myself on one knee, but it’s painful to hit the hard floor like that. “Ow-ow- _owww_!!”

My hands slap the floor as I hear more words that aren’t mine. _‘Just—Go!!’_ It sounds a lot like this voice I’ve heard at night, when I’m asleep. This voice that asks me about everyone—how they’re doing, what’s new in Inaba, if any shadows came back—and _especially_ about Dojima.

“Nnh! No!!” I shout, grabbing at my hair. “Get out!! Beat it, you nosey cub! Stick your head in another burrow!!”

_‘‘Nosey cub’ my ass! This is going to be my space now—my body—YOU beat it, you hyper freak!!’_

_W-w-what!?_ My head pulses as I slide to the floor, still gripping my hair. But this is _me_! It’s mine and I need it— _I need to get out of here so I can help Dojima-san!_

_‘No, you won’t! Because it’s NOT your body! I already told you, no-brains. Geez, listen to me, would you?’_

“Who are you?” I hear myself ask, though my voice is more quaky than I want it to be.

_‘Doesn’t matter. Just be a good yoke and lemme— Have this—’_

_No! It can’t take my body—I worked hard for it!!_

_This smells of danger for more than just me—!_

I try my best to fight off the attacker, crouching on the ground and concentrating _really_ hard. I picture myself throwing a shadow out of my head, locking a blurry human in a box, and building a wall around my core self. The Voice yells at me, its anger sharpening to a point that hurts.

I curl my body into a ball, slapping at my ears. But you can’t block something that comes from the inside by stopping up the hole. It’s already _there_.

By the time it quiets, I’m panting, clutching at my head and whining. I don’t know what to do about The Voice, and now it’s here with me, somewhere I don’t think I even want to be. Maybe it even brought me here on purpose—It called me a ‘yoke’.

_What does that mean?_

‘Yoke’ isn’t a word I know, and there isn’t anybody here to ask. All I can do is get out of wherever ‘here’ is, so I stand up and find the wall again. I follow it to a corner, and when the next wall gives a little, I can tell it’s a door. Finding the handle, I twist, trying to get it open. There’s a metallic _click_ and then it won’t turn anymore. Locked.

_Was this a trap?_

I try to force it, knowing this place won’t have the same rules as the humans’ world. Still nothing, and The Voice could come back at any time—Plus who knows what’s outside of this small room. A scaredy feeling tickles the back of my brain, telling me it might be worse than in here.

_You never do know…_

Was that me or The Voice? Sometimes it sounds almost like it could be my own self saying those things—Sounds so similar to how I talk, to the voice I use inside my own head for my thoughts. I don’t like those ideas, so I push them away and pound on the door, deciding that I can’t move forward until I leave this cage of a room.


	4. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things are strange, indeed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided on the ending today and wrote up a whole new draft, trashing the last two. I'm satisfied with the ending itself, even if the chapter needs some work... ORZ

Chapter Three  
(Ryou)

I stroll the station, trying to appear calm and collected. The act of ‘strolling’ versus ‘walking’ exudes a confidence, an air of security—If I pretend to be comfortable, maybe it’ll be enough to shake this unease permeating everything. _Like a shadow falling over the whole station._

It’s been a long time since I’ve lived in a constant state of unease. There have been times in my life, yes—quite a few if I’m honest—but this is _different_. It’s as if I’m being watched.

Maybe not by someone, but by… Some… _Thing_ …?

“ _Ah-hnnh!_ ” I clear my throat loudly and the resulting noise echoes harshly off the hard walls and tiled floor in a way that viscerally reverberates back through me. Involuntarily shivering, I reach out for the wall.

My hand connects with a strange surface. My brain identifies it as ‘wall’, and it feels like a wall should, but it’s _not_ —

The painted plane buckles beneath my touch, appearing to warp the sheetrock beneath. It takes me a few seconds to process, then I recoil, grasping my wrist as if my hand were on fire! The wall oozes back into place, causing bile to rise from deep in my stomach.

I look away from the wall-that-isn’t-a-wall and examine my hand. It’s fine.

 _A migraine?_ There isn’t any other logical explanation. No, my migraines haven’t caused visual hallucinations before, but I know it’s within the scope of possibility. Because walls don’t do that; they just _don’t_.


	5. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ted's ben found! But it only raises more questions, both for himself and for the situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for missing two days!! I had a bit of an emergency and wasn't able to get to my laptop... ((The desktop is broken right now, not that I could've gotten there anyhow...))
> 
> Thanks for sticking with me! Only a few left!! There'll be NEW tags tomorrow!

Chapter Four  
(Teddie)

_The voice—_

_The Voice has been here for so long now that I can’t remember when it wasn’t. Was I born with it? Is it a part of me? Why does it think this is Its body and not mine?_ So many questions tumble through my head as I continue to rattle the doorknob and pound on the wood.

For the first time I _hate_ that time works differently inside people’s minds. They say that the average dream lasts only five minute in real-time, but everyone knows it feels like so much longer.

Good dreams start your day right! Nightmares have lasting effects that can make you feel scared and watched until you sleep again. Dreams can make you feel perfectly refreshed and ready to face anything, or too frightened to even leave your bed.

Right now I’m in Dojima’s dream and it’s already scary. There might be someone else here, and worse—I’m trapped and won’t be able to help Dojima if he needs it!

There’s this surging of _need_ in me to protect him. I felt it when I wanted to comfort him earlier, and it’s even stronger now, like it’s been amplified by this place where I’m so isolated. _I need to get outta here and fi—_

Suddenly it’s too bright as the door swings open, there’s so much light I can’t adjust quickly enough. I lose my balance cause I was leaning into my banging, and I fly forward.

I grunt as someone catches me from going all the way down. “Oohp—”

 _Dojima!_ I hear in my head, still unsure if it’s me or someone else. I can tell his voice, and even if he didn’t speak I’d still have known. I can _feel_ that it’s him.

 _‘Good job doing something right,’_ the uppity voice quips.

“Go away!!” I exclaim, whipping my head back towards the closet.

Dojima recoils, setting me upright as his face changes to a look of pain. “Oh,” he breathes, quickly letting go and backing up a step.

“N-no I—” I try to tell him. “Sorry, I—I—I didn’t…”

“It’s alright,” he sighs, resting his big hand on the nape of my neck. A warmth spreads through my tummy and The Voice is silent, but I can sense that it’s only because it’s not upset or something.

_That’s it! The Voice…_

_That’s why I’ve been getting so interested in Dojima-san. It tells me to pay attention to him, to make sure he’s okay, wants me to check in on how he’s doing. The Voice likes him… And because I’ve been getting to know him, now I like him too._

“St-stop looking so surprised,” Dojima grumbles, looking at some spot on the wall behind me. “You _know_ I’ll always be there for you.” He says it like he’s so sure of himself, like he’s committed to helping me when I need it. I reel, rocking back and forth on the balls of my feet.

 _It’s a nice feeling._ My insides swirl up in a flurry of nice feelings. _Good_ feelings. A grin spreads across my face and Dojima starts to turn bright red!! He groans in a pretend-tired way as he rubs my neck before swatting the back of my head.

I yip involuntarily in surprise, then look up at him confused. _I’ve only ever seen him hit Adacchi like that. He likes me as much as Adacchi?!_

“Don’t look at me like that,” Dojima complains, folding his arms.

My eyes feel huge, open really wide. “Like how?”

His brows twitch and his face scrunches up briefly. He seems less tired than usual and like he’s forgotten we’re somewhere very weird. “Like you want…” he trails off. “We’re at _work_ , dammit!” he snaps, changing his mind.

“At work,” I repeat. He rolls his eyes and nods, confident.

_He really, really honestly thinks—_

My lips press into a line until they feel so smushed I think they’ll pop. There isn’t anything I can say. It might be bad to tell him, if he gets too scared this world could crumble. My whole consciousness is here, inside Dojima’s head. _I don’t know if I’d be sent back or get lost in here…_

_This place that’ll be reduced to nowhere when he wakes up._

_‘So take off,’_ I hear. _‘Seeya!!’_

_I can’t—_

_Then he might be stuck here with you alone._ _You’re hoping for that._

There’s no reply. It doesn’t disagree.


	6. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We're back in Ryou's POV, and boy does he have no idea where or when he is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is the one that is still unfinished. I'm going to work on it a little before I sleep, but I can't promise it'll be out tomorrow... >.< I don't want to disappoint, so I'm warning now.
> 
> Thanks for bearing with me!! :)

Chapter Five  
(Ryou)

“Let’s go home,” I say, ushering the younger man back to the office. “We can pack up, then you can come eat with us tonight.” I ruffle his hair affectionately and Tohru giggles. “This day feels like a nightmare,” I quip. I glance at my partner and see his eyes shift sideways. “Something’s off, isn’t it?” I quietly press. “You feel it, too.”

Tohru nods tentatively, not saying anything. I’m having a hard time really seeing him. There’s a foggy veil wrapping his body, but it’s him. I _know_ it’s him even if my mind is still playing tricks on me.

I draw in a breath, putting my arm around Tohru and pulling him back towards our closet of an office. He comes along almost too easily, clinging to my shirt in a gesture more suited to Nanako than a full-grown man. It’d be cute if I weren’t so uneasy myself. I keep him close to me, feeling protective of this skittish man I’ve become so close to.

We arrive shortly and I reach out to open the door, surprised when Tohru moves in front of me, grabbing my wrist so he can turn the knob himself. I snort, amused, but he apparently isn’t playing around. “Dojim—”

“ _Ryou_ ,” I correct him. “There’s no one else here.” I pat his back reassuringly.

Tohru chews on his lip. “Maybe.” He twists the handle and steps inside in front of me. “You wanna go home?” I nod when he turns back to me.

“What if you were having a nightmare,” Tohru questions in a non sequitur. “How do you wake yourself up?”

“Having those again?” I answer, smiling sadly. “Don’t worry; stay with me and I’ll wake you.” I lean against my desk, wanting to set him at ease, the atmosphere forgotten for just a minute. “I’ll take care of it.”

Tohru’s looking hard at the floor, so I nudge his shin with the toe of my shoe. “I promise. I’ll always be here for you.” His face blinks, shimmering for a second. I pinch the bridge of my nose, feeling dizzy.

The world spins as I close my eyes, trying to find my center of balance. I feel Tohru grab my arm and I’m pulled upright again. There’s a hiss of sound coming from where he’s touching me and I flinch backwards.

“Even if I’m terrible?” he says. It comes out distorted,and I yank my foot away.

“T-tohru?” His voice sounds like an echo; like we’re on the phone with a bad connection.


	7. Chapter Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If shadows can more easily possess their counterparts, then shouldn't the counterparts also be able to more easily possess their shadows?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for sticking with me! I've got another sinus infection, but at least it's not full-blown bronchitis like I had in September... Please... Just give me some time that I'm healthy >.<

Chapter Six  
(Teddie)

 _Dojima just told me that I can call him ‘Ryou’. I should be happy, but alarms are going off. This is so badly wrong that I can’t ignore it._ He’s treatig me _too much_ like Adachi now. Fear creeps up from the tips of my toes all the way to the ends of the hairs on my head.

Dojima keeps blinking a lot, like he’s having trouble seeing everything around him. I’m asking questions, trying to figure out what I can do to get us out of here, but he’s having trouble paying attention, too. His replies don’t feel like how he’d treat me, and it’s making me nauseous. He’s being so nice that I can’t stand it—And it doesn’t mane sense!

_I should be happy…_

_‘I told you,’_ The Voice sneers. _‘This is mine—We’re the same, you and I. That entitles me to you.’_

 _No—Stop._ I’m firm.

_You’re not me. We’re getting out of here! And I’m getting rid of you!!_

I hear Dojima say that he’ll “always be here for” me, and I waver. I _want_ him to—

 _‘He means me.’_ It’s insistent. Sure.

Confident, like I’m not. Like it’s my opposite. Like it knows the right buttons to push to—

“ _Even if I’m terrible?_ ” The Voice says.

Out loud.

It comes out of _my_ mouth, but doesn’t have my voice. Dojima’s face is shocked that something changed in me and he’s falling, but I can’t do anything—I’m willing my body to move, but it won’t. _Dojima-san!!_

Then, right before he’s on the floor, my arm flies out and grabs him. A smile stretches across my face. I can _feel_ it, but it’s not me moving.

“T-tohru?” Dojima tentatively questions.

“Of course it’s me,” The Voice says, morphing more to a normal tone. _More to something I recognize…_

_It’s…_

_…Tohru’s tone._

_That’s who’s inside me. It’s Tohru._ I’d shudder if I could. But I can’t. I’m trapped here, inside this— _This—_

_I don’t know what this is. It’s not me, I know that. But it’s not entirely him either, though._

“G… Good,” Dojima replies, gaining certainty with his second attempt. “Of course it is.” He puts his arm around me—Around _us_. “I’m glad you’re here—”

“Of course I’m here!” I hear Tohru cut him off, giggling. “You told me we’d always be together, so I found you. Isn’t that what you _want_?” The tone of his voice is so leading, so manipulative, I can’t stand it!!

Dojima nods and smiles tantatively. “Hnn,” he comfirms. “I promised you—You—” He pauses and rubs the back of his head. “Well, what’s it matter ‘when’, I still promised. So let’s get the hell outta here, alright?”

When he agrees to stay by Tohru’s sideI feel myself fading, starting to disappear as I’m ejected. _‘NO!! Don’t take—HOW—’_ I can’t even get out a full sentence anymore, it’s starting to sound like it’s all breaking up.

_‘It’s easier to connet with your shadow than break in to someone new.’_

_‘Connect—Shado—’_ I yell with all my might, trying so hard to understand what’s happening!

_He’s saying that I was—_

“You really didn’t know, did you?” he taunts aloud, smirking. Dojims cocks his head, but Tohru pretends he was only talking to him. “That I’d make sure you weren’t alone,” he laughs, sounding genuinely happy.

“Let’s go!” I hear Tohru merrily tell Dojima. He holds out my— _his_ —hand and Dojima bashfully takes it, rubbng Tohru’s head.

The connection snaps and I’m ejected. The last thing I see is Dojima smiling as he leads me to the door of the station.


	8. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A door closes.

Epilogue  
(Yuu)

Nanako and I slip into the house late, I’m shushing her excitement because my uncle’s probably fallen asleep downstairs. I put my finger to my lips while I unlock the door and my cousin nods to me.

The key rattles too loudly and I sigh. _Teddie never made it to us, either. It’s alright, he can stay with us just like old times._

I swing the front door open and Nanako slides inside ahead of me, then stops so short I bump into her. My hand flies to her thin shoulder and I pull my young cousin to me. The house feels strange. _Something’s wrong—_

“Big bro—” she turns to me, eyes searching my face for answers I don’t have.

My hand reflexively fumbles along the wall for a light switch, but I don’t need it. There’s a glowing luminescence coming from the television, bathing Uncle and Teddie in eerie, washed-out tones.

Teddie and my uncle are leaning against each other, holding hands, asleep. I reapeat ‘asleep’ in my head, trying to brush off the primal fear that’s wiggling through my gut.

_They’re so still._

I’m there in an instant, feeling Uncle’s neck for a pulse—I don’t think Teddie has one for me to check, but Uncle’s is— _It’s there!_

Gently, I shake him, but he doesn’t stir. His head lolls to the side and he drops Teddie’s hand. The second that happens, Teddie jumps awake, bolting up from his seat.

He’s wailing instantly, shrieking so much that I can’t make out what it is he’s saying at first. It’s a chorus of, “ _Don’t take him don’t take him!_ ”

It doesn’t even register that Nanako’s found the light until the phone rings. The shrill tone breaks through to me and I reach out for Teddie. “We need to call for help,” I say in a strained voice. He won’t let go though, still screaming what sounds like “ _You can’t have him!_ ”

“Bro!” Nanako’s quavering voice. “ _Bro_ —” she urgently calls for me. _I don’t know what could be so impor—_

Her face is ashen. “It’s about Adachi-san. They said—” She holds out the phone, lost. “Th-they’re saying that they need to talk to—”

 _Uncle’s breathing and Teddie is acting weird, but that seems urgent. He just had a nightmare,_ I rationalize.Prioritizing, I move across the room as if in a dream muself. I take the phone. “…yes?”

“Dojima-san,” the voice on the other end mistakenly greets me. “I’m sorry, we—We lost him a few minutes ago. His state didn’t worsen; he simply… Slipped away.”

“I—I don’t—” I shake my head, confused. Never mind that the call isnt even for me.

“The coma,” the man calmly prompts. “I know you’d been hoping he’d pull out of it. Someone’ll call on Monday about picking up the body—” The rest of the man’s words blur into background noise because I’ve turned back towards the living room.

Teddie is still crying and talking to my uncle, Nanako is in front of me, eyes brimming with concern, and the television is clearly visible behind her. The picture was scrambled when we first arrived home, but now it’s cleared enough.

Two gostly figures are retreating, moving into the darkness of the background. There’s an audible click as the picture suddenly disappears. After, the slam of a door rings out in my head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you SO MUCH for sticking with me. I got two sinus infections during the writing of this story, and changed psych meds once. My personal problems have been getting in the way of my writing, but I don't want to just STOP. I appreciate the support I get from my friends and colleagues every day, as well as all the kudos and comments left here. Thanks for making me want to strive to get healthy and become a better person and writer!!
> 
> If you're someone new, please feel free to check out my profile and social link with me ^^


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